Yoma 52 - Inside the Holy of Holies

The High Priest, with the incense and the coals in his hands, would walk into the Holy of Holies. For that, he had to move between the two curtains separating it from the Sanctuary, first, all the way in one direction and then, inside of Holy of Holies, in the opposite direction, until he would reach the Ark.

Once he reached the Ark, he placed the shovel full of burning coals between the two poles of the Ark, heaped the incense on top of the coals, and the whole chamber filled with smoke. Then he walked back, still facing the Ark as the sign of respect, and before leaving the chamber, he recited a short prayer. He would not prolong it so as not to frighten the people by his delay.

Now, which Temple are we dealing with in this description? In the first Temple, there were no curtains, and in the Second, there was no Ark, since King Yoshiyahu hid it!? The answer is that we are talking about the Second Temple, and we did not mean the Ark itself but rather the place where the Ark stood before. But it says, “between the poles of the Ark!?” - Here too, understand “between the place of the poles.”

Art: Smoke. Autumn by Jozef Chelmonski

Yoma 51 - The way to the Holy of Holies

The High Priest continues on his way with the incense to the Holy of Holies. He walks through the Sanctuary until he reaches the two curtains that separate it and the Holy of Holies. The space between the two curtains measured one amah (about two feet). Rabbi Yose says there was only one curtain, as the Torah describes it, “And the curtain shall divide between the Sanctuary and the Holy of Holies.”

Rabbi Yose seems to be right since he has a quote from the Torah to support him. What do the Sages answer? They say that this was true in the First Temple, which was relatively low. The wall, which had a thickness of one amah, served as a partition, and a door in that wall was used as an entrance. However, the Second Temple was higher, and the wall could no longer stand on its own due to its weight. Therefore, there were two curtains instead, marking the outer and inner parts of the would-be wall.

Art: White Walls in Sunlight Morocco by John Singer Sargent

Yoma 50 - High Priest dies

If the High Priest confessed his errors, then slaughtered the bull over which he confessed but then died, can a substitute High Priest enter the Holy of Holies with the blood of this bull? When the Torah said, “With this Aaron enters… with a bull,” - did it mean to include (with the bull or even with its blood), or to exclude (with the bull but not with its blood)? Rav Ashi suggested the following answer: “Does Aaron really enter dragging the bull by the horns!? - Of course not! Rather, he brings in the blood. Thus, the substitute High Priest can also bring the blood.” And Rav Ami, who disagreed, what is his logic? - He says, “With this Aaron is ready to come into the Holy of Holies” - that is, with the bull which he slaughters, not with its blood.

Does this bull represent communal offering or his private offering? If you accept that it is his private offering, then I have another question for you: can you exchange it for another (a prohibited act, but does the holiness transfer?) We know that transfer (Temurah) only works for a personal offering, not for partners. Does the High Priest take all other Kohanim as partners in his offering (Temurah is invalid), or does he make his own atonement and achieve it as a side effect (Temurah is valid)? - No definite answer.

Art: Bulls fighting By Albertus Verhoesen

Yoma 49 – A mistake of Rav Sheshet

They asked Rav Sheshet a question, “If a Kohen carries a part of a sacrifice in his left hand, is it valid or not?” He replied, “We should learn the answer from Yom Kippur: the High Priest carries the incense in his left hand, and the coals in his right, and that is OK!” Firstly, why does he have to bring such strong proof from Yom Kippur? – Because he wants to show that even in this serious case where atonement depends upon it, the service done with the left hand is still valid. But secondly, we learned an explicit ruling that any service done by a blemished Kohen while sitting or with the left hand is invalid! With this, Rav Sheshet's answer is completely disproved.

And Rav Sheshet, how could he make such a mistake? We have heard him quote this explicit ruling in another situation!? The answer is exactly that: previously, he did not know this ruling, so he compared it to Yom Kippur, then they taught him this ruling; now he changed his mind, and in fact, later taught it to others.

Another question: if a High Priest scooped the incense but died before he got a chance to bring it to the Holy of Holies, can a substitute High Priest use his prior scooping, or does the procedure have to be repeated? Here, after a few attempts, the Talmud does arrive at the answer: since later on the High Priest will have to pour the incense out into the shovel and then scoop from it again, we see that a substitute High Priest can do the same in case the first one dies. This proves it.

Art: Study Of Clasped Hands By Andrea Boscoli

Yoma 48 - Unanswerable questions of Rav Pappa

“In between, obvious, leveled, scattered” is a mnemonic sign to remember the following inquires; however, this is nothing but a hidden mystical key. All of the Talmud used to be learned by heart, so having a key such as this one would be of little help in other places.

First question: the incense between the fingers and hands of the High Priest on Yom Kippur - should it be burned on the coals or no? In the phrase, “and he will scoop with full hands, and he will bring...” which word is more important? If it is “he will scoop with full hands,” then even the particles in between are included, but if it is “and he will bring,” - then it is not his intention to bring them, and so they are not included.

Second: it is obvious that scooping should be done in the normal way? However, what if he did it just with his fingertips, or by pushing his hands into the incense and allowing it to collect inside - is this still acceptable or not?

As a preface to his third question, we need to recall that if one spilled the blood of a sacrifice on the floor and then scooped it back up, it is invalid, but if he received it into a vessel, then spilled from the vessel and scooped back, then it is valid. In the case of High Priest, if he spills the incense from his hands onto the floor and picks it up - is this valid, or does he have to scoop again from the shovel? Do we compare his hands to the animal's neck so that his procedure is invalid, as above, or do we compare his hands to a Temple's vessel, and then it is valid? The questions above remain without an answer.

Art: Brass Cooking Vessel By Antoine Vollon

Yoma 47 – Kimchit, the flour girl

The incense service continues: they bring the High Priest a shovel and a ladle. But he already used the shovel!? – That one was for coals, and this one is with incense, from which he scoops two handfuls, and whether his hands are large or small – that is the measure. Why the ladle? - He puts the incense there – and he cannot do it in any other way because he will need to carry both the incense and the shovel with the coals together into the Holy of Holies.

He takes the shovel into his right hand and the spices into the left one. Even though the incense is the main point, he carries it in the left because he needs the right hand for the heavier shovel with coals, which measured three “kav” (about three liters). This would be true even for the High Priest by the name of Ishmael, son of Kimchit, whose enormous hands held four “kav” of incense – because, in addition to being heavy, the coals are also hot.

Kimchit had seven sons, and they all served as High Priests during her lifetime – not because anyone died, but because of accidents when one was disqualified due to ritually impure saliva landing on his garment. The Sages asked Kimchit why she merited seven sons serve as High Priests, and she answered, “The beams of my house never saw the braids of my hair.” They answered, “Many did so, and it did not help them.”

What is the status of incense or flour particles that are found between the fingers of a Kohen? They are not properly inside or outside his hand, so it is unclear if they are part of the offering or the remainder. Because of this doubt, some say that only fat Kohanim could do this service. However, this opinion is not universal.

Art: Portrait of Wilhelmine with Her Hair in Braids By Lovis (Franz Heinrich Louis) Corinth

Yoma 46 - The fourth pyre

The fourth pyre on the Altar - which was only required according to Rabbi Meir - was for burning the limbs of the daily offering on those days when some were left from the previous night. It was fired even on Shabbat, and therein lies the problem: lighting fire on Shabbat is prohibited. We understand that the Temple service overrides this rule, but to what extent? Therefore, Rav Avin qualified it: the pyre is started even for invalid (such as ritually impure) parts, but only if a fire had singed them.

Two potential prohibitions need to be overridden when burning sacrifices in the Temple: Shabbat and ritual impurity. Rav Huna said it is the first one overridden but not the second one, and Rabbah said it is only the second one. Abaye asked a question that is a problem equally for both: the Torah said, “Bring the sacrifice in its time,” which seems to mean, “even on Shabbat and even if ritually impure.” Why prefer one exemption and leave out the other?

However, both have their answers. Rabbah uses the rule “ending should be like the beginning,” that is, since we may suspend the laws of purity at the beginning of bringing the sacrifice if we have no alternative, so too, in the end, we can burn parts that have become impure. There is no such logic for Shabbat. On the other hand, Rav Huna disagrees with the “ending like the beginning” principle. Rather, he says that Shabbat can be abrogated in this case since communal sacrifices are freely brought on Shabbat, but we never totally dispense with the laws of purity.

Art: A Night Scene With An Old Lady Holding A Basket And A Candle by Peter Paul Rubens

Yoma 45 – Two, three, or even four pyres on the Altar?

The High Priest proceeds with the Yom Kippur service, which in some aspects differs from the daily one: every day, they used a silver shovel to scoop up coals – in order not to waste money had it been from gold. However, today he uses a golden one throughout, and a light one at that – to preserve his strength because it is a hard day for the High Priest, who is fasting like everybody. Every day a Kohen burned half of the incense in the morning and a half in the afternoon, but today the High Priest prepares two handfuls of incense to burn in the Holy of Holies.

There are differences in walking and washing the hands – for the honor of the High Priest. Finally, every day there were four pyres on the Altar, but today five, with the fifth added for the coals to burn the incense. The number of pyres is actually a disagreement: all agree that there were at least two, one of the sacrifices and another one for the daily incense, according to the verse “it is a burned offering on the flame on the Altar... and the (other) fire of the Altar shall be aflame.” Some say, though, that there is an additional pyre to maintain the large pyre. Finally, those who require the fourth pyre say that it was used to burn the limbs of the sacrifices not consumed at night.

Art: An old man warming his hands over coals by (after) Jacob Cornelisz Van Oostsanen

Yoma 44 - The slaughter of the High Priest's bull

The High Priest makes two confessions on the bull that he had bought with his own money: the first on himself and his house (wife), the second - for his brothers the Kohanim. This is logical, for when he asks for forgiveness for others, he should already have achieved one for himself.

Now he comes to slaughter this bull. Just as with the previous morning sacrifice, he makes only the initial, most essential cut and lets another Kohen complete it. This is because he also needs to receive the blood - the second of the four sacrificial services, which are all to be done by him - and for this, he needs to be in front of the bull. He leaves that blood in a vessel with another Kohen, who stands on the paving stone outside the Sanctuary and stirs it so that it does not congeal while he proceeds with the incense service. He takes the shovel, goes up the Altar, scoops the innermost coals, and places them in the shovel. Then he places the shovel on another paving stone in the Courtyard and directs himself to bring the handful of incense.

Art: Bull by John Glover

Yoma 43 - A checkerboard of logic

The laws of red heifer include multiple double exclusions, where one phrase excludes something, while the next one excludes part of the exclusion and, thus, includes a new law. For example, when the Torah said, "And you shall give it (the heifer) to Elazar the Kohen," this means that only "it" - the heifer in the time of Moses - is given to Elazar, but subsequent cows need not be given to Elazar (who was deputy High Priest). Rather, the service is done by the High Priest himself. Others say that rather it means that the cow is given to a regular Kohen.

It is easy to understand those who claim that "not Elazar" means a regular Kohen. But how can it be "not Elazar but the High Priest himself?" What is the logic here? - It is based on the same word "the law" used both in the description of Yom Kippur, where all the service is done by the High Priest and in the description of the service of the red heifer.

The Talmud goes through the subsequent fifteen phrases of the red heifer service, showing the exclusions and multiple opinions. When Rabbi Yochanan and Resh Lakish studied this area of law, they could never come up with a consistent set of rules, but sometimes the next phrase would negate the previous, and sometimes not. Thus, they said that they were like foxes in a grain field, which can only take away the dust on its feet.

Art: Watering cows by Willem Roefols

Yoma 42 - You say, two strips of wool, and I say - three

Our last discussion concerned two strips of red wool used in Temple services. However, when Rav Dimi came back from one of these numerous learning trips to Israel, he brought back the teaching of Rabbi Yochanan, which was later enhanced by Rabbi Yonatan, and they said that there were three such strips. They also provided the minimal measures: the strip for burning the red heifer was the heaviest, the weight of ten "zuz" coins - since it had to land inside the fire in which the red heifer was burning. Next was the strip tied to the horns of the sent-away goat and, since it had to be divided in two, it needed a minimum of two "sela" coins or eight "zuz." Finally, the third one was used to purify a leper (metzora), and it could be as light as four zuz. Thus the question was now completely resolved.

On the subject of the red heifer, the Torah said that "it will be slaughtered in front of Elazar, the priest." From here, we see that one who slaughters it does not have to be a priest (Kohen). Others say that since it is a Temple service, the one who slaughters had to be a priest also. Regardless, the High Priests made a point of always slaughtering the red heifer themselves and otherwise showing their appreciation for this mitzvah.

Art: Goats in a landscape by (after) Johann Rudolf Byss

Yoma 41 – A strip of red wool

The two goats having been designated earlier, the High Priest now ties a strip of red wool on the goat's horns designated to be sent to Azazel and positions this goat next to the eastern gate (Gate of Nikanor), through which it will be sent. The goat that stands to be slaughtered, he positions opposite the place of slaughter.

The last words “opposite a place of slaughtered” are intentionally ambiguous: it may mean next to the area where it is slaughtered, or it may mean that the strip of wool is tied next to the place of the cut in slaughter. The Talmud concludes that it is the latter; this was done so that the High Priest can tell this goat apart from all the other ones. This conclusion will change on the next page where Rabbi Yochanan does not mention the strip of wool that would go on the goat's throat.

There were two strips of red wool: one here, on Yom Kippur, and another was thrown into the fire while burning the red heifer. Rabbi Yitzhak said that he heard from his teachers that one of them had a minimal weight, while the other did not, but he did not remember which one. On the one hand, the Yom Kippur strip was cut in pieces, with one piece remaining on the goat's horns and the other placed for observation in the Temple. When the remaining piece became white, people knew that they were forgiven. So it is reasonable to say that this strip needed to have at least some weight. On the other hand, the one thrown in the fire had to land inside it, not be burned on the first contact, so maybe it needed to be heavy. This remains unresolved.

Art: A Study For The Head Of A Goat by (after) Philipp Peter Roos

Yoma 40 – High Priest's Voice

During the Yom Kippur service, the High Priest pronounced the Name of God ten times, and, as one of the miracles, his voice was heard far away from Jerusalem – up until Jericho, which is ten “parsah,” or over twenty miles away. He pronounces the name three times in the first confession, three times in the second, another three – during the confession while sending a goat to Azazel, and once – during the lottery. Similarly, the goats in Jericho sneezed from the smell of the incense in Jerusalem, and women in Jericho did not have to perfume themselves because of this fragrance.

Earlier, we described how the High Priest would snatch the lot from the lottery box and place each lot on the designated goat. If he omitted the procedure, the service would become invalid. Since the Torah said, “And Aharon will place the lots,” the absence of this would become a show-stopper – these are the words of Rabbi Yannai. However, Rabbi Yochanan disagrees: in his opinion, the High Priest designates the goat on which the lot falls, and his words alone are sufficient. Thus, even if they omitted the lots altogether, the service would still be valid. All would agree that the lot's actual placement on the goats is not essential and could be skipped – although it is a mitzvah to do it.

Art: The road to Jericho by George Lambert

Yoma 39 – He snatched the lot from the lottery box

The High Priest would snatch the lots from the lottery box with two hands and then raise the hand with the “for God” inscription. In the other hand, he held the lot “for Azazel.” He then placed the lot on the appropriate goat and pronounce “For God.” The people would again answer, “Blessed is the name of the glory of His kingship, forever and ever.” Why did he have to snatch and not just take the lots? – So that he did not intentionally direct his right hand to the one marked “For God.”

For the forty years of Shimon the Righteous, the lot “For God” always came up in the right hand of the High Priest. After his death, at times, it came in the right hands of the High Priest, but at times in the left. So too, during his tenure, the fire on the Altar was strong and never extinguished; even so, the priests continued to bring their two blocks of wood, but it was only to fulfill the mitzvah.

For forty years before the destruction of the Temple, the lot “For God” would never come up in the right hand of the High Priest, the tongue of crimson wool would not whiten on Yom Kippur, and the doors of the Sanctuary would open on their own – until Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakkai rebuked them, saying that it is enough for the misfortune to come in its time.

Art: Woman Carrying Firewood and a Pail by Jean-Francois Millet

Yoma 38 – What is bad?

While earlier we mentioned the good deeds and stopped to praise the people who performed them, now we need to mention the bad ones. The family of Garmu possessed the secret of baking the Bread of Vision for the Temple so that it would never crumble, and they did not want to teach this to anybody. Their official excuse was that they did not want it to fall into the wrong hands and be used in the service of idols. However, they were praised for never giving refined bread to their children so that nobody would suspect them of using the Temple bread.

The family of Avtinas knew the secret of mixing the incense so that its smoke would always go straight up and did not want to teach it, with the same excuse. Their good quality was that their women would never use perfume – to avoid the suspicion of using Temple's incense. Hugras the Levite knew a special way to produce captivating singing but refused to teach it, not wishing it to be used for idols.

Ben Kamtzar would take four pens in his hand and write the four-letter name of God, finishing all the letters simultaneously, thus never leaving the name of God incomplete. He, too, did not want to teach this skill but could not quote a selfless reason for it. Thus, the bad people are all mentioned together with derision, but there is an additional blessing any time we mention a good person.

Art: A Writer Trimming His Pen by Jan the Younger Ekels

Yoma 37 - Remembered for good

The High Priest would next come, with his two attendants, to the two goats prepared for the lot. The chest for the lottery contained two lottery tickets made out of boxwood, one with the inscription "For God" and the other - "For Azazel." He would draw the lots with his two hands and designate the goats, one for the sacrifice and the other to be sent to the desert.

Later Ben Gamla made the lottery pieces out of gold, and the Sages would recall him with praise. Other individuals should also be remembered for good. Ben Katin made twelve spouts for the laver so that the twelve Kohanim involved with the morning sacrifice could wash their hands and feet at once. He also invented a mechanical device that prevented the water in the laver from becoming unfit because of staying overnight.

King Munbaz made all handles of vessels used for Yom Kippur out of gold. His mother Helene made a golden candelabrum at the Temple entrance so that when the sun rested on it, people knew to say the "Shema, Israel" prayer. Finally, Nikanor was a man for whom a miracle happened, and the heavy copper gate he had made for the Temple floated through the storm to the shores of Israel, and they kept that door and named it after him, long after the other doors were replaced with golden ones.

Art: The Candelabrum by John Singer Sargent

Yoma 36 – The Name

Next the High Priest would come to his bull – the one that he bought with his own money, to atone for the his sins and for those of his household (his wife). The bull was standing between the Altar and the Temple's entrance, along the wall of the Altar, with its head turned to the right, in the direction of the Temple. The High Priest would also stand facing the Temple, put his hands on the head of the bull, and pronounce the following confession.

He would say, “Please, the Name, I have sinned willfully, rebelliously and inadvertently. Please, the Name, please grant atonement for the willful, rebellious and inadvertent sins – that I have committed before you, I and my household." Then he would quote from the Torah where the promise of forgiveness was given. The people who listened would prostrate and say, “Blessed is the name of the glory of His kingship, forever and ever.”

What was this Name? Some say it is was the four letter name of God, the Tetragrammaton, that the Torah commanded to conceal and that is commonly pronounced instead as “Adonai”, or my Master. Others say that the name that the High Priest pronounced was completely different from what we have in our texts, and that it was a secret name of forty-two letters. One of the reasons for concealment was the power that the name could give to the wrong person.

And where did the Torah command to conceal the Name? – When God told Moses, “This is My Name forever (leolam)” - read this word as “lealem” - to conceal.

Art: Portrait of a Bull's Head by Thomas Sidney Cooper

Yoma 30 – Cleanliness in the Temple

When a priest in the Temple urinated, he needed to clean his hands and feet for service by washing them. If he moved his bowels, he needed a complete immersion in a mikveh. In general, anybody who entered the Temple needed to go to the Mikveh first, even if he knew he was ritually pure.

Why are these extra measures of cleanliness? If one urinates, he may have drops left on his feet. Such drops may indicate the penis being cut in some serious way, in which case he may not be able to make a woman conceive. If he is married, people may think that his children are not really his, and to prevent this possible rumor, he needs to clean his feet. And since he will wipe the feet with his hands, he must now wash both.

On Yom Kippur, the High Priest will have to immerse himself in a mikveh five times, every time that he goes to a different part of the service. From here, we reason: if for going from one service to another a mikveh was required, then of course for entering the Temple to do the first service, certainly a mikveh was required – hence the requirement for anyone who enters the Temple to first go to a mikveh. Others say that the reason for the first immersion was different. While going through the water to purify himself, one may recall about an old, more serious ritual impurity that he had forgotten about. Thus it was only a device to remind him of his status.

Art: Pilate Washing His Hands by Rembrandt Van Rijn

Yoma 29 – Things to be done in the morning

Earlier, we mentioned how the priests mistook the moon's light for the light of the sun and slaughtered the morning sacrifice before its time. But how was it possible? The light of the moon shows in a column, and the light of the sun is spread out!? – It was a cloudy day. This teaches us an additional lesson: the sun behind the clouds diffuses its heat. Why is that important? – for example, this may affect the leavening of matzah.

Rav Nachman continues with teachings about the sun. The sun bursting through the cloud feels stronger than in the open sky, just as the smell of vinegar in a jar, when released, feels stronger. The thoughts of wrongdoing are more harmful to a man than an actual act, just as the smell of roasting meat is more pleasing than the meat itself. Relearning something once learned but forgotten is harder than acquiring new knowledge, similar to making new cement from old cement.

The rising of the sun spread behind the clouds is compared to the antlers of a morning hind. On that subject, why was Ester compared to hind? – Just as a hind has a narrow womb and is desirable to her mate every time as the first one, so was Ester desirable to the king Ahasuerus. And so are the words of the Torah always beloved to those who learn them. And just as the antlers always grow, so too the prayers of the righteous become stronger as they persist in them.

When did the incident of invalid early sacrifice occur? If on a weekday, why is it mentioned here talking about Yom Kippur. And if on Yom Kippur, the moon is yet small!? - Really, it occurred on a weekday, and this is a digression. Incidentally, bird offerings and flour offerings would also be invalid if offered before daybreak.

Art: An Old Man At Prayer By Jacques des Rousseaux

Yoma 28 – Abraham the philosopher and astrologer

Back to the order of Yom Kippur, the next event that happened in the morning, the administrator would tell the assembled priests, “Go and see if the time for the slaughter of the morning offering has arrived.” One of them would step outside, observe the sky and cry out, “Dawn!” They would confirm, “As far as Hebron?” - and he would say “Yes.” Why did they have to confirm? Because once they have mistaken the light of the moon for that the sun and slaughtered the morning sacrifice, but then had to take it out to the burning place for invalid offerings.

The first Jew, Abraham, was very precise with timings, and his Afternoon prayer, Mincha, was exactly at midday. We, however, cannot know the times as precisely as Abraham did because he was a master astronomer and astrologer. Moreover, he observed the whole Torah before it was given, having figured out what protective ordinances the Sages later enacted. From where do we know this? Because God says about Abraham that he “...obeyed My voice, and kept My charge, My commandments, My decrees, and My Torahs” – that is, the written Torah and the additional Torah laws established by the Sages. In fact, the tradition continued in the family, and Isaac and Jacob also learned Torah and taught it.

Art: Johannes Vermeer The Astronomer

Yoma 27 – The hide

Depending upon the type of the offering, a varying number of Kohanim was required. Thus, a ram was offered by eleven and a bull – by twenty-four priests. Each carried his own part of the animal; for the larger parts, more than one priest was required, and the flour offering, which consisted of three “hin” measures (about 3 liters each), each Kohen was bringing a “hin” in its own vessel. This was only done for communal offerings, for added honor, but for a private offering, if its owner designated one Kohen, this Kohen could bring the whole thing. For flaying and cutting up the sacrifices into parts – everybody was equal in that respect.

By “everybody was equal,” the teacher really means that even a non-Kohen was allowed to do the flaying and the cutting. But how do we know this? – Since the Torah said, “He shall have the burned offering skinned and cut into pieces. Aharon's sons shall place the fire on the Altar...” we understand that starting from the fire service, a Kohen is required, but before that – he is not.

In a similar vein, although normally a non-Kohen who performs priestly service is liable to death at the hands of Heaven, slaughtering is an exception and can be done by a regular Jew. Since the Torah said, “He shall have the young bull slaughtered... and the sons of Aharon will bring its blood to the Altar,” we see that beginning from the blood service, a Kohen is required. Still, that slaughter can be done by anybody – usually the owner of the sacrifice.

Art: Moroccan Butcher Shop By Theo van Rysselberghe

Yoma 26 – The last two lotteries of the day

The third lot was for burning the incense, and only the Kohanim who never burned incense before would be allowed to take part in it. Why? – Because it makes one rich. And how do we know that? – Because the Torah said, “They shall bring incense in Your presence,” and right after that, “bless, O God, his resources.” Finally, the fourth and last lot was to select who will take the limbs of the sacrifice from the ramp and bring them to the Altar.

Depending on the festivities and the additional rituals for the occasion, the daily sacrificed could be offered by anywhere from nine to twelve Kohanim, but not less or more than that. The sacrifice itself was divided into nine pieces, and each was carried by another Kohen. On the Shabbat within the festival of Sukkot, there were the following additions: a flask of water to be poured on the Altar -- a special for Sukkot, the two blocks of wood, and the new Bread of Vision.

Art: Still Life Of Apples And A Glass Of Water by Philippe Rousseau

Yoma 25 – What garments to wear for the lottery?

In total, there were four lotteries every day to dole out the Temple services. Why were lots used for that? – What kind of question is this, for we already said it was to avoid discord!? – Actually, the meaning of the question is why assemble four times when one lot for all services could be sufficient? - It is good to stir up the Courtyard, for the greater the number of people serving God – the better.

Did they use their regular garments or holy garments for the lots? Some say that they used the regular garments because otherwise, the bullies among the priests could seize services by force had they already been attired. Others say that if they drew lots in regular garments, they might rush and do the services in them, which would be wrong.

What was awarded in the second drawing? - Slaughtering the daily offering, throwing its blood on the Altar, cleaning the Inner Altar, cleaning the Menorah, and bringing the limbs of the daily offering onto the ramp of the Altar. Then we have the argument about the order in which the limbs were carried.

Art: A woman cleaning pots at a casement by (after) Gerrit Dou

Yoma 24 – Removal of the ashes

The first service of the day, the one auctioned in the lottery, was removing the ashes. What garments did it have to be performed in? That answer depends on the argument whether it was a real service or just a preparation, with the conclusion that it was a real service, and thus the regular four items of the Kohen's attire were required.

How much of the ashes had to be put down on the ground next to the Altar? Should we learn from the separation of tithes and say it is one-tenth, or from the separation of the spoils of Midian and say it was one in five hundred? The conclusion is that we should learn from the separation of the flour offering, and it was a handful.

At times, besides the symbolic removal of the ashes, there was a real cleaning. What garments should this be performed in (they are called “other garments” in the Torah) – better or worse quality? Using the principle that “when a servant mixes wine for his master, he should not use the same garments as when he is preparing a dish for his master,” we conclude that the removal of the ashes was done in better quality garments.

In general, if a non-Kohen performs a Temple service, he is liable to death at the hand of Heaven. However, only a complete, final service carries that responsibility. For example, is a non-Kohen liable for arranging the lamps of the Menora? - No, because there are also wicks. Is he liable or the wicks? - No, because there is also putting them in the lamps? Is he liable for that, then? - No, because there is also putting oil. And he is not liable for it either, because there is also kindling. Then surely he must be liable for kindling!? - No, he just holds a flame to the wick, and the wick ignites by itself.

Art: Study Of Garments by Ghirlandaio Domenico

Yoma 23 - David and Shaul

On the previous page, we mentioned that one should not count the Jews. Two people who did count were King Shaul and King David, and Talmud continues with them. King Shaul was without a blemish, and that exactly was his blemish. One needs to have a “basket of creepy-crawlies” behind his back so that if he becomes haughty, they can tell him, “Looks where you come from!” So even though Shaul did fewer wrong acts, David, when he erred, cried and asked for forgiveness, which counts more.

Also, Shaul renounced his honor and did not take revenge on Amalek, as a king should. Any Sage who is not vengeful and does not keep a grudge like a snake - is not a true sage. Now, this last statement is problematic because the Torah said not to take revenge!? - It is only meant in monetary matters. But still, we learned that one should be forgiving!? - Yes, if the offender comes to apologize, but otherwise, the Sage should keep the offense in mind.

Before there was a lottery and people were still running up the ramp to claim the Temple services, once a priest, seeing the other one in front of him, thrust a knife and mortally wounded him. They eulogized him right there, and then the boy's father came and said that the death of his son should be the atonement and that his son was still alive, so they should take the knife out of him and avoid ritual contamination of the knife. 

He cared more about the knife than about his son! How could this happen? Did the purity become more important, or did the bloodshed become cheaper in their eyes? Alas, they cared little about life.

Art: The Wounded Trumpeter by Horace Vernet

Yoma 22 - Priestly lottery

The very first service of the day in the Temple was the separation of a small portion of ashes from the Altar and putting it down on the ground. Initially, any Kohen who wanted to do it could do it. When many Kohanim vied for the privilege, they would run up the Altar’s ramp, and the first to reach the Altar would win. However, people started to fight. It happened that one pushed the other, who then broke his leg. The Sages, therefore, instituted a lottery, which was conducted in the following manner.

All Kohanim would assemble in a circle. One would take off his hat - he was the one from whom the count started. The Temple administrator told them to stick out one of two fingers; he would call out a large number and start counting from the first Kohen in a circle. The one on whom the count ended was the winner.

Why was there no lottery at first? Because the Sages expected that not too many people would rise early enough for this service. They reasoned that it is easier to stay late than to wake up early. Then they established running competition and later a lottery. However, the people stopped coming, saying, “Who knows if I will win the lottery!” So the Sages increased the reward, and the winner would get the removal of the ashes and two more subsequent mitzvot.

And why did they count fingers and not people? Because one should not count the Jews.

Art: An old man with a raised finger by Jacob Jordaens

Yoma 21 – Miracles

Since the previous page mentioned Festivals, the Talmud continues with the details. When the Jews would come to the Temple on pilgrimage, they were crowded together so that each person stood straight as a beam, and at times his feet were occasionally lilted off the ground. However, when they had to prostrate themselves and confess their mistakes, miraculously, the space between them increased. There were four steps between each other – and this was one of the ten miracles that regularly occurred in the Temple.

The Talmud discusses the other miracles with their particulars, excluding some and adding others to the list. For example, the Bread of Vision remained piping hot after it was left on the Temple table for a week: since the verse literally said, “to put bread, warm, on the day, it (the old one) is taken off,” we move the comma and understand that it was “warm on the day it was taken off.”

Another miracle was that king Solomon planted all types of fine fruit trees made of gold, and they produced fruit at the right times. This is mentioned in the phrase “May its fruit rustle like that of Lebanon,” and “Lebanon” always means the Temple. When the wind blew on them, the fruit would fall off, the priests gathered them and made their living from the profits. When the soldiers entered to destroy the Temple, the trees withered, but in the future, God will restore them since it says, “It will blossom abundantly... the glory of Lebanon will be given to it.”

Art: Fruit Tree in Blossom By Carl Fredrik Hill

Yoma 20 – Chasing away sleep

If during the night of Yom Kippur, the High Priest started to doze off, the young priests would snap fingers loudly in front of him and say, “Our Master High Priest, please stand up and do an exercise on the floor,” and thus they kept him awake all night. Prominent people of Jerusalem would not sleep and would make their voices heard to support the High Priest.

Abba Shaul said, “They adopted this practice also in the provinces, except that they used the time for frivolities.” Elijah the Prophet met Rav Yehudah and told him, “You ask why the Messiah is not here yet? It is Yom Kippur, yet how many virgins lost their virginity this night in Nehardea!” Rav Yehudah asked, “And what does God say about it?” Elijah answered, “Sin waits at the door (that is, I, God, created the desire for illicit relations.).” Rav Yehudah asked again, “And what does the Accuser say? Elijah told him, “Accuser has no say on Yom Kippur.” The Gematria of Accuser (Satan) is 364, and on Yom Kippur, which is the day 365, he has no power.”

Normally, they would start the Temple service by taking away some ashes from the Altar at the rooster's call. On Yom Kippur, when more had to be done, they started at midnight. There was more to do at the festivals, and then they started the service after the first third of the night had passed.

Art: The Rooster By Edwin John Alexander

Yoma 19 - The oath of the High Priest

Just before the Yom Kippur, the Sages of the Sanhedrin would turn the High Priest over to the Sages from among the priests. They would administer an oath, “Our Master High Priest, we adjure you, by the Name of He who makes His Presence dwell in this Temple, that you will not change a thing from the proper service.” After that, he would turn away and cry - because they suspected him of being a deviant. They would also turn away and cry. Why? - because anyone who suspects a righteous one will be punished. 

Throughout the night of Yom Kippur, he would not sleep. Rather, if he was a Sage, he gave a lecture, and if not, scholars lectured him. If not, he would read from the Scriptures, or they would read to him. What did they read? - even action-filled “Chronicles” to keep his attention. Often he did not even know Hebrew, and they read the book of Daniel, which was in the vernacular (Aramaic).

Art: La Leçon de Lecture (The Reading Lesson) by Léon-Augustin L'hermitte

Yoma 18 - Wife for a day

In the seven days before Yom Kippur, the Sages would read the Torah portion of Yom Kippur in front of the High Priest. Then they would say, “Master High Priest, please read it back to us, for perhaps you forgot or never learned." How could it be that he never learned? – In the times of the Second Temple, the position was bought for money. 

On the last day, they would show him all the animals to be used for sacrifices, except for the goat brought as a sin offering for all Jews – lest he becomes despondent thinking of it.

On the last day, they also did not give him much food, for food leads to sleep, and too much of it might cause him to becomes ritually impure through seminal emission. They also did not feed such foods as etrog, eggs, fat meat, and wine – for the same reason.

In general, a guest should take precautions not to soil the linen he sleeps on, or the host's garments, if he wears them – lest they see it and think less of him. The Sages were very careful to maintain this sort of purity, and for this, they would announce, “Who will be a wife for a day for me?” when they were visiting a remote location.

This, however, leads to many questions. How could they marry wives in many places – what if their children, not knowing each other, will intermarry? – Those Sages were famous, and their progeny would know where they came from. Another problem: a prospective wife needs to go to a mikveh seven days in advance, so how can they choose anybody on the spot? – The answer is that they would send a messenger to announce their intent a week in advance. Alternatively, we can say that they only secluded with the woman of their choice but did not have relations, thus obviating all of the above questions. But if that is so, how did it help? – One who potentially has a wife (“a bread in his basket”) cannot be compared to one who does not.

Art: A Footman Sleeping by Charles Bargue

Yoma 17 – The right-of-way for the High Priest

On all the days of the year other than Yom Kippur, the High Priest does not do the regular daily Temple duties – unless he wants to. In that case, he has the right to say, “I will offer this burnt offering,” or “I will offer this flour offering,” or “I will eat this sin-offering,” and so on.

For more special offerings, he is entitled to a portion of it. For example, he can have one lamb of the two brought on Shavuot. The special “Bread of Vision,” which induced mystical visions, was distributed among the Kohanim on every Shabbat. Of these twelve loaves of bread, he takes four or five. Now, this division is not logical. In the first case, he was entitled to exactly half, and in the second – to less than half. Also, what does “four or five” mean?

However, in this rule, we have a mixture of different opinions. First, one says that the High Priest can have up to half of the total - based on the Torah's phrase, “To Aaron and his sons,” which is understood as “half to Aaron and half to his sons.” Another opinion is that he takes less than half – that is the “four or five” out of twelve. However, it could also be that all agree that he takes less than half; as far as one loaf on Shavuot – it would not be polite to break it. There is also an opinion that two of the twelve loaves of bread of vision are given as a reward for the closing of the gates, and the remaining ten are divided between the rest – this explains the “four” as less than half of ten.

Art: The Pet Lamb by J. Hardwicke Lewis

Yoma 16 - Where exactly was the Altar placed?

When the deputy Kohen would burn the Red Heifer, he had to do it on the Olive Mount, right across the entrance to the Temple building. This is required by the Torah, and we understand from here that he had to actually see the entrance. This was only possible if the eastern wall of the Temple was somewhat lower than the other walls. The Talmud is interested in whose opinion this is. It answers that it could only be Rabbi Elazar ben Yakov since only according to him, that wall’s foundation was high enough for the problem of visibility to arise.

But perhaps this is the opinion of Rabbi Yehudah, since, according to him, the gates' geometry would allow this direct view? - No, it could not be him, because according to Rabbi Yehudah, the Altar was exactly in the middle of the Courtyard and would obstruct the view. Thus, by combining the limitations imposed by the rules of burning the Red Heifer and the Altar position, the Talmud finds who was the author of the rulings we are learning here in Yoma and in the Tractate Midot, which concerns the exact sizes of everything in the Temple.

Art: Jerusalem From The Mount Of Olives by Frederic Edwin Church

Yoma 15 - Attention to detail

Earlier, in describing the order of the day of the High Priest in preparation for Yom Kippur, we mentioned that he would “burn the incense and prepare the Menorah.” We can assume that every day the service follows this order. If so, we have a problem: the order of the Tractate “Tamid” service, which is specifically dedicated to Temple procedure, is listed differently: first the Menorah and then the incense.

Rabbi Yochanan explains that the two are written by different authors and that Rabbi Shimon HaMitzpah is the author of Yoma. Every teacher of the earlier times (before 200 C.E) is entitled to his opinion on the basic facts, and if they differ - we have two aspects of truth, only we don’t know how to reconcile them.

But even within one Tractate, Yoma, we also have a contradiction! We will later learn that the lots by which it was decided which Kohen gets which service also go in the order of menorah - then incense. Abaye explains that too: cleaning the seven branches of the Menorah was done in two steps: first the five branches, and then the remaining two. The incense was brought in between these two steps. Thus we see that the order could indeed be described differently, and depending on which part of the services you are talking about, the cleaning of the Menorah could occur before the incense or after it. The key Torah phrase here is “when he prepares the lamps, he shall bring the incense.” This phrase is explained differently by Abba Shaul and the Sages. The Talmud continues to point out and reconcile contradictions in the order of the service.

Art: Cleaning The Swords by Hermanus Koekkoek

Yoma 14 – What does the High Priest do for seven days?

Normally the High Priest is not doing regular services. However, on Yom Kippur, he will be performing them all by himself, so for the seven days of sequestration, he practices these services daily: he throws the blood of the sacrifices, burns the incense, prepares the lamps, and offers the head and the hind leg of the daily offering.

Whoever wrote down this ruling, it was not Rabbi Akiva. Why not? Because it would contradict his other ruling: for all seven days, they would sprinkle the High Priest with the ashes of the Red Heifer to remove any possible impurity of the dead he might have contracted. According to Rabbi Akiva, this sprinkling has an amazing property: it purifies only the impure ones, but if someone is pure in the first place, then the ashes make him impure until the end of the day. Thus, according to Rabbi Akiva, the High Priest would be impure every day and unable to perform any service.

From where does Rabbi Akiva derive this most strange fact? – From the words of the Torah, “And the pure will sprinkle upon the impure.” The Torah could have said “upon him,” why did it have to again emphasize that he was impure? – To tell us that the impure becomes pure, but the pure becomes impure. The Sages say that it would be totally illogical, and as far as the words “on the impure” – they learn a different law from it. But how does Rabbi Akiva answer the logic argument? He says, “Even Solomon could not understand it, as he said, “I wanted to become wise, but it is beyond me.”

Art: The Judgement of Solomon by Sir Peter Paul Rubens

Yoma 13 – Another wife for the High Priest

Just as they prepare a substitute Kohen for the High Priest, they prepare a substitute wife for him – if his wife will die. Since the Torah said, “He will atone for himself and his house (euphemism for wife)” - he must have one – this is the opinion of Rabbi Yehudah. The Sages, however, say that if so, they would have to prepare another wife, and another wife, and so on, to no end – therefore, conclude the Sages, they don't prepare a second wife for him.

The second wife, however, leads to some complications. First, he is not married to her. The Talmud suggests that he should marry her. But then he has two wives, and the Torah said to atone “for his house,” not “for his houses.” Then he should divorce her! - If so, he has no substitute wife! Rather, what we mean is that he should divorce her conditionally: if she does not die before the end of Yom Kippur, the divorce takes effect retroactively from the time it was given. Thus, if she does not die, it transpires that he only had one wife, and if his present wife dies, he has a substitute. But what if she does not die (the divorce takes effect), and his present wife does die, and he is left without any wife during Yom Kippur!

After considering a few more conditional divorces, the Talmud decides to make it dependent on her action (if she goes into a synagogue, she is divorced) and then on his action. Finally: he divorces both wives conditionally: to one, he says, “This is your divorce (Get) on the condition that your fellow wife does not die,” and to the other - “This is your Get on the condition that I enter a synagogue.” 

Art: Self-Portrait with His Wife, by Jan de Baen

Yoma 12 – Another High Priest

While the High Priest spent his seven days in solitude preparing for Yom Kippur, another Kohen was designated as standby for the contingency that the High Priest would become disqualified for services. This could be due to a seminal emission on the night of Yom Kippur or to some other ritual impurity. In that case, the designated Kohen would become a High Priest and perform the service.

However, how is this possible? Normally, a Kohen becomes a High Priest by either being anointed with special oil or by donning the eight garments of the High Priest, with the appearance of gold, and additional items such as a breastplate and tzitz. The third way to be consecrated for High Priest's work would be to perform a service specific to him. In sum, he should do something special that only a High Priest can do.

In the Second Temple, there was no anointing oil. After the first morning sacrifice, the High Priest would take off his “golden” garments and dress in pure white linen and become indistinguishable from a regular Kohen in the Temple. Thus, if a disqualification were to occur now, there seems to be no way to consecrate the standby Kohen. Rav Adda said, “His belt is different, since it is of pure white linen, while that of a regular Kohen is of colored wool together with linen.” This advice only works if the belt of a regular Kohen is indeed different, but there are varying opinions on that. Abaye suggested, “Let him dress up in golden garments and turn some parts of a burning sacrifice – which is also a special service!” Rav Pappa said, “Any service that he does makes him the High Priest because only a High Priest can perform service on that day.” The last advice seemed like a loophole, but Rav Pappa found a precedent that served as proof.

Laundress Carrying Linen by Edgar Degas

Yoma 11 - Mezuzah for all

Since the Torah said, “Write the words about God on the doorposts of your house and on your gates,” we understand that just as the gates of your house are included, so too the gates of your courtyards, provinces, and cities. However, just as a house, it should be inhabited. For example, strictly speaking, a synagogue requires a mezuzah only if the sexton (gabbai) lives there.

Would a storehouse require a mezuzah? Some say that they do not require a mezuzah because it is not “your house” but an animal’s. Others say that it is “your house,” that is, a house belonging to you, and thus requiring a mezuzah. All agree that a bathhouse does not need one.

What about such a gate that is straight at the bottom but oval at the top? Rabbi Meir says that it still needs a mezuzah, while the Sages say that it does not. What is the point of contention between them? Rabbi Meir applies the principle of “we view it as if straightened out,” that is, if we were to remove the extra material at the arch and make the doorposts go straight, wouldn't it require a mezuzah? - so even now, it does. But the Sages disagree with the principle of “we view it as if straightened out.”

Art: Yellow Bath House And Sailboat, Bellport, Long Island by William Glackens

Yoma 10 – Mezuzah for the High Priest

God's presence was more palpable in the First Temple than in the Second one. One reason for it is that the Jews did not go up en masse to the Land of Israel – this is the opinion of Resh Lakish. However, Rabbi Yochanan disagrees and says that even if they had gone, it would not help – based on the phrase “God will beautify Greece, but His Presence will be with the sons of Shem.”  Although the Persians, who are considered the descendants of Greece, built a beautiful Temple, God's presence still dwelt only in the First Temple, which was built wholly by the Jews. The Talmud then discussed the fates of the states and nations based on their role in the building or destruction of the Temple.

Did the chamber in which the High Priest lived for seven days before Yom Kippur have a mezuzah? Some say that a mezuzah was required there only for those seven days, but they still kept it throughout the year, lest they forget to put it on, or lest the people say that the High Priest is locked in a prison. Others say even those seven days are a disagreement: even though the High Priest did not choose to live there but was forced to, it is still considered a valid dwelling that needs a mezuzah – so say the Sages. In contrast, Rabbi Yehudah says that it was not considered a proper dwelling, and the mezuzah was not required. All agree, though, that practically it still was there.

Art: In prison By Rembrandt Van Rijn

Yoma 9 – High Priesthood for sale

At first, the chamber to which the High Priest was sequestered before Yom Kippur was called “The chamber of the nobles,” but later, it became known as "The chamber of the administrators." This was because the High Priests of the first Temple were of greater stature.

In fact, during the 410 years of the First Temple, there were a total of eighteen High Priests, which makes for 22 years in service on average. However, during the Second Temple, when they would buy High Priesthood with money, there were 300 of them during the 420 years of the Temple. If you subtract the forty years of service of Shimon the Righteous, eighty of Yochanan the Great, ten of Rabbi Ishmael, and eleven of Elazar ben Charsom, you will see that the majority of the High Priests did not live out one year of their service.

During the First Temple, bloodshed, immorality, and idol worship were abundant, yet only the Temple's roof was destroyed, and that only for seventy years. However, during the Second Temple, when ostensibly they were learning Torah and doing good deeds, the Temple was razed to the ground and is still not rebuilt. Why is that? – Because they slandered each other in secret and transgressed in secret. However, Resh Lakish presents another view: the later generations are greater because they still learn Torah with all the hardships.

Art: Gossip at the stile By Valentin Walter Bromley

Yoma 8 - Tzitz

Tzitz is the golden head plate worn by the High Priest. It fixes the defects of the sacrifices so that even those sacrifices that were not normally acceptable become so with the help of the Tzitz. This is expressed by the Torah as follows, “So that Aaron will bear the sin of the sacred offerings.”

However, which offerings could the Tzitz make kosher? If the priest bringing it wanted to eat it in the wrong place, it “would not be acceptable,” and if he even wanted to eat it at the wrong time, it “would not be considered.” Thus, the only problem that the Tzitz could fix was the offering that became ritually impure.

Did the Tzitz have to be on the forehead of the High Priest to be effective? That depends on the understanding of the word “always (Aaron will wear it).” You can understand that whenever Aaron wears it, it is effective, but not otherwise. Or, you can say that “always” means “constantly when possible,” but even when it is not possible to wear it (such as during sleep), it still works. The Talmud tries to resolve its earlier question, whether the laws of purity are completely abrogated or if they only allow a few exceptions, using the laws of Tzitz, but alas, Tzitz allows both interpretations. Incidentally, from Tzitz, we derive that one who wears tefillin must be constantly mindful of them.

Art: Yemeni Jew, 1914 National Geographic Magazine.

Yoma 7 – Is everything permitted?

Previously we mentioned that if all priests are ritually impure, they can bring sacrifices in the state of impurity. However, does this mean that everything is permitted and that the laws of purity are temporarily abrogated, or perhaps we only make an exception where we have to? For example, if the priest shift who is serving this week is completely impure – on the first point of view, they would do the service, but on the second point of view – another group of the priest, from a different week, would be invited. Rav Nachman represents the first, more lenient point of view, and Rav Sheshet – the second, more stringent.

First, the Talmud limits the disagreement: if there are foods that need to be eaten, such as two loaves on Shavuot, everybody agrees that we look for ways to do it in purity. Also, when the sacrifice can be brought at any time, they wait until the priests become pure again. Thus, the disagreement only exists for holidays, such as Passover. Then, the Talmud finds an earlier disagreement, between Rabbi Yehudah and Rabbi Shimon, on the same question. This points to the fact that the argument cannot be resolved. Rather, its roots go back to much earlier times.

As a practical matter, Rambam rules that not everything is permitted: the rules of purity are not abrogated, but only an exception is taken in specific cases. Thus, when it is possible to find a way to maintain the purity, it should be done.

Art: The Argument by William Henry Knight

Yoma 6 - Why do we separate the High Priest, again?

Earlier, we mentioned that for seven days before Yom Kippur, the High Priest is separated into a special chamber, where they teach him the order of the services. Why do we do this?

The Talmud asks, what kind of question is that? We already explained: according to Rabbi Yochanan, this is derived from the dedication ceremony, and according to Resh Lakish - from the giving of the Torah. The Talmud then rephrases: why do we separate him from his “house,” that is, from his wife? Let her go together with him!

The Talmud answers that there may be a doubt about her being ritually impure because of the menses and dismisses that: are we talking about non-observant people? Of course not! Rather, the doubt may arise my accident, later, after they had relations. If so, we should likewise be concerned that someone will die in his presence, and we should not allow him any human contact at all! The answer is that the ritual impurity of the dead is different: if most of the priests (and in our case, if the High Priest, the only one who can lead the Yom Kippur service) are ritually impure with the impurity of the dead, the service can proceed. Alternatively, the answer is that people normally don’t die suddenly in one's presence, so the Sages were not concerned about this possibility.

Art: The Dead Body of Wallenstein by Von Piloty Karl Theodor

Yoma 5 - How important was the first Temple service?

Obviously, the first service, called Inauguration, or “miluim” in Hebrew, was important in that it allowed all subsequent services to proceed, but how important was it? What would happen if one skipped an element of it? Rabbi Chanina and Rabbi Yochanan argue about this, with one of them saying that absolutely every element was important and missing it would invalidate the entire service. The other one says that acts that would not be essential in the future could be skipped at the Inauguration.

For example? - Leaning. One has to lean on every sacrifice with all his weight and declare the reason for it. If one does not, his service is inferior, even though it still counts. And how do we know that leaning may be omitted? - Because the Torah said, “And he will lean and be forgiven.” However, we know that only the blood of the sacrifices achieves forgiveness. This is a hint that leaning on the sacrifice is required, but it does not invalidate it if not done.

Thus, one of the Sages holds that leaning at Inauguration was essential. Which one? The Talmud finds that in arguing with Rabbi Yochanan, his opponent mentioned that all Inauguration elements were essential. Since Rabbi Yochanan did not deny it, we know that this was his point of view too.

Another question: in what order did Moses dress the first Kohanim, Aharon first, and then the sons, or all at the same time? The Talmud first objects that whatever happened already happened, and we don’t need to discuss it. It says that even if we need it for the future, Elijah, the prophet, will tell us. Finally, it concludes that this is a valid question and finds two Sages who disagreed about it.

Art: Two women leaning on a gate by Edgar Degas

Yoma 4 - What is Yom Kippur like?

Earlier, we learned that Yom Kippur is compared to the Temple dedication. Just as there, the priests stayed in the Temple for seven days, so must the High Priest prepare for Yom Kippur by seven days of separation. This, however, is the opinion of Rabbi Yochanan. Resh Lakish compares Yom Kippur to the giving of the Torah. Just as Moses was covered by the cloud for six days, everyone who is to enter Divine presence must prepare for this by being alone.

Their disagreement is about how to understand the phrase of the Torah, “And the glory of God rested on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it (or him) for six days.” The words “Vaykasehu” can be understood as “covered it (the Mount)” or “covered him (Moses).” If God's glory covered Moses, then we can learn from here the behavior before Yom Kippur. But if it covered the cloud - then we cannot learn anything from it. Also, this difference in understanding leads to different dating of the giving of the Torah, the holiday of Shavuot (sixth or seventh of Sivan), and to a different understanding of the relationship between God and Moses: when God called to Moses, then, if the cloud was covering Moses, it signified the need to come close to God and receive the Torah. If, however, the cloud was covering the Mount, then, when God called to Moses, he was emphasizing that of all the Jews, He wanted to talk only to Moses.

Art: Moses by Carlo Dolci

Yoma 3 - What is so special about Yom Kippur?

Earlier it was said that just as the Levites spent seven days near the Tabernacle, separated from all, for the consecration, so too there will be a yearly event requiring separation for seven days, and that event is Yom Kippur.

But what is special about Yom Kippur? Why not say that this seven-day separation has to precede any sacrifice? And if you tell me that we don’t know which Kohen will be doing the service, I will answer that maybe the whole group serving in the Temple on a specific week should require solitary confinement beforehand? - The Talmud answers that it is better to compare consecration, which was done only on a specific day, the eighth day of the service, to Yom Kippur, which is also only once a year, as opposed to sacrifices which are brought every day.

The Talmud then tries to connect the seven-day separation to other holidays, such as Pesach, Shavuot, Sukkot, Shemini Atzeret, and Rosh HaShanah - and disproves such connections, giving a specific reason. For example, other holidays occur three times a year, but Yom Kippur - only once. Finally, Ravina finds a reason that works in every case: Yom Kippur is special because all of its services were performed by the High Priest. This can only be compared to the first consecration, which was completely done by the first High Priest - Aharon.

Art: Separated by Istvan Farkas 

(Istvan Farkas: 1887, Budapest - 1944, Auschwitz)